Fact Check-Posts claim Jan. 6 Capitol attack conspiracy based on movie theater listings

Social media users are claiming that only one film is available in theaters in the U.S. on Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, 2022, suggesting that it could have a connection to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Examples can be seen here and here .

The text in the posts read: “Something odd is going on in theaters across the nation on Jan 7 and Jan 8. I first saw this on one of the sites that I frequent. I confirmed it in my area. It appears that the only movie that is going to be showing, Jan 7 and Jan 8, is “The 355.” Check your local listings and see if that is the case in your area. Wonder if this has something to do with the press conference Pres. Trump has scheduled for Jan 6?”

The description in one post reads: “DUDE!! This is really real! And it’s tripping me out! The ONLY movie playing at local theaters this coming weekend is The 355. I just checked Fandango. Why?!? I have no clue if it has to do with Trump or 5G, what, but something seems super weird about this especially since so many big movies just came out over Christmas!”

The users did not say precisely where this was happening.

Some users commented with the description of the action film called “The 355”, in which a CIA agent joins three international agents on a mission to retrieve a top-secret weapon. (www.imdb.com/title/tt8356942/ ) The film is due to be in theaters on Jan. 7, 2022. (www.the355movie.com/ )

There is no indication that the film is about or related to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Reuters was able to find several other films available in movie theaters on Jan. 7 and Jan. 8 in various locations in the U.S.

Reuters has reached out to AMC and Regal, the two largest cinema chains in the U.S, for comment.

Reuters Fact Check previously debunked a claim that U.K. theaters were not allowing any film ticket bookings due to an imminent lockdown or 5G here .

On Jan. 4, 2022, former President Donald J. Trump canceled a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida that had been scheduled for Jan. 6, saying he would address many of the same topics at a rally in Arizona on Jan. 15 instead. (here )

Instead, President Joe Biden will mark the one-year anniversary of the deadly Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump’s followers with a speech warning of the threats to democracy. (here )

Fact checkers Lead Stories and Associated Press have also debunked this claim here and here .

VERDICT

False. There are movie theaters across the U.S. that are showing a variety of films on Jan. 6 and Jan. 7, 2022. The movie “The 355” is not about the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work  here  .         

*** This article has been archived for your research. The original version from Reuters India can be found here ***